


If You Give a Bull a Bed

by Kateera



Category: Basic Instinct (Movies), Hannibal Extended Universe - Fandom, Mænd & høns | Men & Chicken (2015)
Genre: Abandonment, Dinner, First Time Blow Jobs, Fluff, Hannibal Extended Universe, M/M, Sleepy Cuddles, Smut, Time Travel (Mentioned)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-30
Updated: 2017-05-30
Packaged: 2018-11-06 18:09:21
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,079
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11041509
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kateera/pseuds/Kateera
Summary: Grabbing a coat off a mannequin is one thing but when the mannequin turns out to be a person, Elias panics and runs away. Gabriel gets upset, Elias almost sleeps on a park bench, and Adam finds someone who doesn't bore him to death. Could it be love?





	If You Give a Bull a Bed

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is based on [THIS](http://vampirevvekend.tumblr.com/post/45375122176/one-time-at-hm-i-thought-a-guy-was-a-mannequin-so) Tumblr post. It was written for the Baby Bull Fest and became much longer than I thought it would so, enjoy!  
> It's not beta'd so all mistakes are mine and if there are any blaring ones, please message me so I can fix them!  
> As usual, comments and kudos are life blood.

 

 

 

There was a certain hopelessness to the mall in Aarhus and Elias scowled at the sign on the clothing store as it announced its current sale prices. All the colors felt muted and the people who lived and worked and shopped there disgusted him. They stared vacantly at the vast nothingness of consumerism surrounding them and purchased seconds of fake happiness with the swipe of their black cards. He felt trapped in the din of shuffling feet and beeping registers and the constant suffocation of Gabriel’s anxiety.

 

Feeling an itch to do something while his brother deliberated over the price of different fabrics, Elias picked up a small satchel from the back of the latest clothing shop. He admired the bright yellow leather, a splash of color against the brown and gray monotony of the store, when Gabriel snatched it out of his hands with a curse.

 

"Don't fucking touch that," he snapped. His worn patience from the long day of keeping an eye on Elias while shopping for a birthday present for Ellen painted worry lines over his forehead and around his mouth.

 

Elias grabbed the offending item back and straightened the straps as he put it back, folding his arms across his chest with a huff. "You've been looking for hours. We're going to miss the ferry and then you won’t be there for the party anyway."

 

"Just stand here and don't touch anything." Gabriel ran a hand across his face and headed back to the wall of scarves.

 

_Sit, wait, stay still, don't touch. I may as well be Gregor. I’m not a dog. I came because he gets into trouble without me but do I get a thank you? No. I get yelled at._

 

The thought settled behind his tongue and he placed a hand over his mouth to keep it from escaping. The trick, one shown to him by Ellen while he tried to help with dinner one night, worked like a charm most days and Elias leaned against the wall until the desire to speak dissolved. His eyes followed Gabriel around the store until a long black coat hanging on one of the mannequins caught his attention. The coat almost touched the ground, looking soft and warm, and Elias crossed his arms and tucked his hands against his chest to keep from touching as he walked over. Standing so close to the mannequin, Elias couldn't help himself and grabbed a handful of fabric to feel is slide between his fingers. The soft texture of the black material felt heavenly and Elias tried to imagine wearing something so plush against his skin.

 

"Hey, what are you doing?"

 

The mannequin turned around and eyes that were very much alive settled on Elias' face. Elias froze under the confused gaze, the fabric still in his clenched hand. He was face to face with the most beautiful man Elias had ever seen and he couldn’t move under the force of those blue eyes. A slim face framed by dark curls, arching brows, and frowning mouth; Elias couldn’t stop staring. The man reached out and pulled at the fistful of coat in Elias' hands.

 

"I said, what are you doing? Let go." The man's accent gave him away as a foreigner, a lovely English lilt to his speech, and that was the last detail Elias filed away before releasing his hold on the other man's coat and sprinting for the door.

 

 

*******

 

 

Strong shoulders, warm and expressive eyes, lean legs, trim waist; Adam cataloged every aspect of the beguiling man as he careened through the mall, thumping footsteps fading into the normal noise of the crowded hallway.

 

_Who was that and where the fuck do I get one?_

 

The curly hair was a bit of a travesty and the clothing choices were hideous, but nothing compared to Adam’s current sex life, a nearly nonexistent entity consisting of his right hand and a bottle of lotion. He wouldn’t call himself sex starved but perhaps sex hungry. Turning back to the rack of earth toned trousers, Adam sighed and spun the metal stand in disgust. Living in this country might have been the right call as far as his career and life was concerned, more interesting and somewhat legitimate stories, more journalism and less comments on which celebrity was fucking which nanny, but boredom quickly set in as he met wave after wave of dull, lackluster men. His last relationship had lasted four months and he’d left the country after the man chased him down the street with a golf club. Since he’d been chasing him to grab the pictures Adam had of him sleeping with his former tennis coach, Adam felt the best course of action was to leave town. One plane ride to Denmark’s largest island, and a bus ride to Aarhus, and Adam was in a whole new world. He’d been slow to make friends and even slower at making friends with benefits. Realizing that his encounter with the “coat fondler” qualified as more action then he’d seen in months, Adam was ready to chase after the curly haired sprinter and get his number.

 

“Adam! There you are! You going to buy something or just sulk?”

 

Turning around, Adam smiled at his new, self-proclaimed, best friend and shook his head. “I don’t think so, Liv. This place is as dull as Mr. Eriksen’s Wednesday staff parties and at least he plays better music. Don’t tell me you actually like this place?”

 

Liv opened her mouth to respond when a frantic voice called out, “Elias, where are you?”

 

Adam looked over to see a small, shuffling man hurrying around the store with a bag tucked under his arm, searching through clothing racks and looking under dressing room doors. A sales person pulled him away from the rooms and the man hunched down in embarrassment as she accused him of peeping.

 

“No, no, I have a wife. Why would I be peeping? I need to find my brother. He’s supposed to be here. He’s got curly gray hair, taller than me, and he’s not supposed to wander off!”

 

By the end of his rant, Adam was sure the little man was discussing the man from his coat fondling encounter. Giving Liv a look of apology, Adam walked to where the man stood with his head in his hands.

 

“Sir,” Adam said, speaking slowly and carefully. “I saw your brother, Elias, right? I saw Elias running down towards the escalators a few minutes ago. He was pretty freaked out.”

 

Adam felt confident that his own participation in the man’s fleeing would be frowned upon and so kept it to himself. The man’s attitude changed from worry to anger and Adam took a step back as the man’s face turned red.

 

“He can’t do a fucking simple task as not move. I’m done with this. If he can’t follow my instructions, then he can find his own way home.” With a nod of decision, the man brushed past Adam and walked to the door. Just as he reached the exit, the man turned around.

 

“Thank you for letting me know,” he said with a nod and left.

 

Liv slid up to Adam and slipped her arm through his. “What a strange man. You think his brother was just trying to escape?”

 

Adam shrugged. “I hope he has then.” Turning to offer her a smile, Adam waved his free arm towards the doors. “You ready to head out?”

 

“But I have a few more shops to hit!”

 

“You realize that this place closes in a couple of hours, right?”

 

“Then I have a whole two more hours of shopping!”

 

Adam sighed and looked down at his watch. “One more hour alright? I’ll walk home if you’re still not ready. And you’re not dragging me into that cosmetics place again. I swear every sales person in there tried to get me in their makeover chair.”

 

Liv laughed and pulled on his arm. “They were mesmerized by your beauty. Now come on, I need shoes!”

 

Adam laughed with her and let her drag him from the store.

 

Two floors down, Adam and Liv located ECCO and pointed at the two for one sign above the door. Adam looked at his watch again.

 

_Forty-eight more minutes and then I can go home, drink a beer, masturbate, and fall asleep by myself._

 

“Why am I friends with you again?” Adam asked as Liv yanked on his sleeve.

 

“I’m a vulgar yet charming conversationalist and I don’t give two shits about how pretty you are,” Liv said, flashing her crooked smile and reminding Adam of a scheming villain in some James Bond movie.

 

“I think I hate you.”

 

“That’s okay. You love me more. Are you coming in or are you going to sit out here and bemoan the fact that you can’t get laid?” Without waiting for his answer, Liv entered the store and joined the throng of shoppers.

 

Adam flipped off her retreating form and headed for the fountain in the middle of the floor. Sitting on the ledge, Adam pulled out his phone and checked his email, searching through the junk to see if his editor had any last-minute revisions to his latest article on sheep cloning, when the thudding of footsteps alerted him to someone pacing in circles in front of him. He looked up to see the man from the clothing store stomping around the fountain, muttering to himself and alternating between sticking his hands in his pockets then pulling them out and running them through his hair. As a result, his hair looked like he’d stuck a finger in a light socket and his pocket linings dangled from his trousers like dingy gray flags. It would have been cute if it weren’t so distracting. He tried to ignore the man’s presence, focusing on his neglected email inbox, but as the man, _Elias,_ Adam remembered, kept up his pacing, he felt his patience dwindling.

 

“Sir, are you alright?” Adam asked, his voice clipped and annoyed at the constant thud of boots.

 

Elias stopped and looked at him with red rimmed eyes and Adam felt a twinge of guilt for his irritation.

 

“Of course I’m alright” Elias said in a loud voice and Adam watched him wince and pull at his ear.

 

The action made him seem like a young boy caught stealing apples and Adam hid a grin behind his hand; his instincts told him this Elias wouldn’t take kindly to being laughed at.

 

“I’m fine, thank you.” Elias said in a much calmer if somewhat wobbly voice. “I’m waiting for my brother.”

 

Putting his phone away, Adam leaned back on his hands and shook his head. “I think you’re out of luck there. I watched your brother storm off in a huff when he couldn’t find you in that clothing store.”

 

He watched Elias’ face fall further into distress and he had no time to react as Elias threw himself onto the floor in front of the fountain and burst into tears.

 

“Um, it’s not that bad,” Adam said quickly. “I’m sure he’ll be back for you.”

 

Elias raised his head and gestured at Adam’s watch. “What time is it?”

 

Checking his watch, Adam said, “Eighteen after seven.”

 

Elias put his hands over his face and started crying again. “The ferry leaves at seven, and we can’t be late because it won’t be back for a few days. We have to make the ferry. Well I didn’t make the ferry and now Gabriel’s left me here, which was of course, his plan all along. I’m a horrible brother so it makes sense, though why he thinks I’m worse than Franz or Gregor, I have no idea. I didn’t think he would leave me in this awful place with the awful people and their horrible odors. You don’t smell bad but some of these people smell like they rolled in manure. That is not a pleasant smell.”

 

Adam followed the rambling as best he could, the words coming out in a garbled mess as Elias continued to talk and sob at the same time.

 

“Of course, I didn’t say they smelled bad because it’s rude and I’m working on that. I’m not very good at being polite. Ellen told me ‘just shut your mouth with your hand when you think rude thoughts’. I’m sorry I touched your coat.”

 

Adam blinked at the last phrase, his mind whirling to catch up with the flood of words. “It’s fine, no harm done.”

 

Elias stared at Adam as if trying to decide if he was lying. Adam felt a surge of protectiveness towards the strangely adorable man.

 

At last he nodded and rested his chin on his knees. “No harm done, okay.”

 

Adam’s heart clenched as he listened to Elias’ soft voice. Even with his brash demeanor and tendency to ramble, Adam could see the shy man peeking out from behind a well-constructed wall. Elias wiped at his face on his sleeve and stood up. Walking further around the fountain, Elias brushed off popcorn and discarded wrappers, sweeping them up in his hands and depositing them in the nearby trash bin. Adam watched, fascinated, as Elias returned and peeled off his large bulky sweater, revealing a thin gray t-shirt clinging to a broad chest and tapered waist. Adam’s mouth watered and his cock gave considerable interest at the sight.

 

_God, I need to get laid. I wonder how red he would blush if I just asked him._

 

Shaking his head, Adam looked over at the shoe shop to see if Liv was ready to go. There wasn’t a hair to be seen of his friend and he sighed and looked at his watch again. Thirty minutes to go. He turned back to Elias to find him stretched out on the ledge of the fountain with his sweater tucked under his head as a pillow. He held back a snort of laughter and pinched his lips together.

 

“Yeah, no. The mall isn’t going to let you sleep here,” Adam said once his humor was under control.

 

“Why not? I need a place to sleep and I’m not hurting anyone. It’s rude to kick people out when they’re not causing trouble. I should speak to the manager.” Elias shifted on the hard stone and drew his knees up to his chest, looking so much like a lost puppy, and Adam resisted the urge to invite him back to his place immediately.

 

“It doesn’t matter. When the mall closes, everyone has to leave.”

 

“I don’t have anywhere to go.” The phrase came out mumbled but Adam heard it well enough to feel a swell of sympathy at the heartfelt words.

 

“Don’t you have friends in the city somewhere?” Adam said with a teasing smile, remembering his first week in the city with no one to talk to or give him the time of day. Now he had Liv and he hoped Elias had someone as well.

 

Silence answered him and Adam felt a flood of guilt at his thoughtless words. “I’m sorry. That was-”

 

“Of course I have friends,” Elias said, raising his head from the fountain ledge and sitting up. “I have lots of friends but dropping by unexpectedly is bad manners. It would be rude.”

 

Adam held up his hands in surrender. “Sorry. You could call though, see if anyone has a couch to crash on until your brother comes back.”

 

Elias huffed and grabbed his sweater. “I know lots of people. I just don’t want to see them right now. Gabriel left me here and I don’t want them to get mad at him.” He turned in a circle until he found the exit sign and started for it.

 

Adam marveled at the kind of man who could be abandoned and then try to save his abandoner from the much-deserved backlash. He jumped up and grabbed Elias’ arm as he walked away. “Wait, I said I was sorry alright? Maybe I should try the hand over my mouth trick sometime huh?”

 

“Maybe you should,” Elias said, yanking his arm away and massaging the skin of his elbow. “You also need a lesson in touching. You’re never supposed to touch someone else without their permission. Don’t you know anything or do you think because you’re pretty, you can be rude?”

 

Adam let him go and scowled. “Fine, whatever. I was just trying to help.”

 

_Why are you being so difficult? Finally meet someone decently interesting and he’s an asshole, of course._

 

Looking at the shoe store, Adam saw Liv walking out with a handful of bags and almost clapped his hands in relief. Turning back to Elias, Adam sighed as he caught a glimpse of ugly sweater disappear around the corner marked EXIT. _Well I tried. And at least I got called pretty._

 

“Adam, I need lotion!” Liv called out and he groaned as he checked his watch. Twenty more minutes.

 

 

*******

 

 

Twenty minutes stretched into forty as Liv wheedled more time out of Adam and rewarded him with his favorite chocolate banana smoothie. He went along with it, his mind still turning the encounter with Elias over in his head, trying to decide what he could have done to make the man agree to come home with him.

 

_What am I supposed to say? Come home so I can suck your cock and hopefully get fucked? Real charming._

 

Growling at his inability to focus on anything other than Elias, Adam wanted to go home and maybe masturbate to an imaginary Elias who begged to come home with him. Detaching himself from Liv and throwing his empty cup into the bin, Adam pointed at his watch while she frowned. “I’m going home. I’m tired and my feet hurt and the music is giving me a headache.”

 

Liv pouted but it turned to a smile as Adam kissed her forehead. She pushed him away with a groan. “Alright, enough mushy stuff. You survived longer than I thought you would anyway. Have a good night!”

 

She blew him a kiss and headed back into the bowels of the mall. Adam walked outside and took a deep breath of air that didn’t smell like sugar and plastic. Pulling his coat tighter around him, Adam stepped through the arch of the mall and into a mess of melted ice cream cone.

 

“Fuck.” He tried to wipe it away in the nearby patch of grass but gave up after his foot came back covered in grass clippings as well as ice cream. Spotting a row of benches across the street, Adam weaved through the other exiting shoppers and sat down to clean his shoe. A slight movement caught his eye and Adam looked over at the other benches to find Elias stretched out on a cold piece of hard plastic, his sweater tucked under his head, and his arms wrapped around his body in an attempt to ward off the cold.

 

“Fuck,” Adam moaned. He thought about heading home, leaving the man to the cold and his bullheaded stubbornness, and curling up on his warm couch with a beer and a book. He’d started reading a rather good story on political time travel just last night and it sat on his coffee table and he could pick it up and try to forget the brash yet adorable man from the mall who’d yelled at him but called him pretty.

 

“Fuck.” Adam stood up and moved to the occupied bench, taking cautious slow steps before realizing that he looked like a creeper sneaking up on an unsuspecting mark and changed his speed to a more casual stroll. Stopping at Elias’ makeshift bed, Adam looked down and tried to decide if he should wake him up. With eyes screwed shut, his mouth set in a frown, and his body quivering in the chilly air, Adam knew he couldn’t be asleep and knelt down by the bench with a friendly smile.

 

“Hey, are you sure you can’t just go to a friend’s house?” Adam asked with a gentle pleading voice.

 

Elias didn’t move and Adam reached out to shake his shoulder before remembering his reaction to Adam’s previous touching. He pulled his hand back and ran it through his hair, imagining various ways this could go horribly wrong. If he woke up tomorrow and found out he’d left a man to freeze to death, Adam wasn’t sure he could shake off that guilt. Standing up and stepping back, Adam pulled off his long black coat and draped it over Elias’ lower body, trying to keep his touching to a minimum.

 

“Try not to freeze to death alright?” Adam whispered, patting the bench as he stood.

 

With his good deed done, Adam hurried away, hoping he could get home before his fingers went numb. _Maybe I’ll read in the bath._

 

 

*******

 

 

The weight of something pressing against his legs in addition to an added warmth, prompted Elias to open his eyes and face his new tormentor. There was no one around and he looked over to see the coat he’d been admiring earlier laid out across his hips and legs like a blanket. His heart plummeted to his stomach and Elias scanned the block frantically, searching for the pretty man he’d met that day. He spotted the owner of the coat walking away from the park, hunched against the wind and cold. He looked miserable and defeated and Elias wanted to wrap him up in his arms and keep him warm forever. Even as the thought entered his head, he pushed it away with a frown.  It couldn’t happen. Elias understood that he was worthless, not smart like Gabriel and too loud and too big and too everything that made teachers snap and scold. The lessons started when his feet hit the yard of the first school he attended and continued until he built up bluster and false pride like a shield around him. Years later and his shield still worked, no one looked beyond it, not even his dear brothers.

 

Shifting his gaze between the coat and the retreating man, Elias jumped to his feet and ran after him. The thud of his heart beat louder in his ears than his feet against the pavement as he raced after the stranger, coat wrapped like a blanket around his shoulders. Skidding to a stop in front of the shivering man, Elias slipped the coat off his shoulders and held it out.

 

“Here. You’re cold.”

 

The man shook his head. “I’m almost home. Please keep it. I don’t want you to freeze to death.”

 

Elias looked at him in confusion and waved the coat again. “Why did you give it to me? You need it more than I do right now. It’s stupid to give away things that you need.”

 

“Yes, but I have a bed and a warm house,” Adam said, his voice sounding annoyed, a tone he knew all too well from Gabriel. “You have a bench in the park and are too stubborn to call your friends for help.”

 

Elias’ arm drooped a little at that and he looked at the ground, mumbling a string of words under his breath. He didn’t want to admit the truth but his heart clenched at the thought of lying. He’d never bothered to feel bad about it before but the nice man, he didn’t want him to go away, lying always made people go away.

 

“What was that?” The man asked, leaning closer.

 

Elias kept his head down as he spoke again. “I don’t have any friends to call. Gabriel does but they don’t like me.”

 

His arm holding the coat dropped completely and he screwed his eyes shut as he waited for the pretty man to respond.

 

“Hi, I’m Adam.”

 

Elias opened his eyes carefully and took in the sight of an outstretched hand and a smiling man on the other end.

 

Grasping the hand firmly, Elias shook it twice and then pulled away, proud that he’d remembered the proper way to shake someone’s hand. “Hello Adam. I’m Elias.”

 

“There,” Adam said, smile widening and making Elias’ heart do funny things in his chest. “That makes us friends then.”

 

Elias blushed, warmth spreading through his cheeks and ears and he ducked his head at the proud proclamation. He wanted to give Adam a hug instead of a handshake, that’s a thing that friends did, right? Before he could move, Adam started spinning in circles and Elias frowned at the strange behavior.

 

_He is very strange. Maybe he wants to stop being friends? What do the circles do?_

 

“Did you want to stay at my place until you can make other arrangements?” Adam asked, stopping his spinning and looking Elias in the eyes. His breathing was shallow and fast as he spoke and Elias wondered if he was sick but decided that the question fell into rudeness territory and so didn’t mention it.

 

“Okay.”

 

Holding the coat out once more, Elias grinned as Adam took it and wrapped it gratefully around his frame. Feeling light and happy, Elias stepped into place beside Adam as they walked to his new friend’s home.

 

_My first friend._

 

 

*******

 

 

_I’m a certifiable lunatic. No one should look that enchanting while blushing. I was ready to go down on concrete right then and there._

 

Adam glanced over at Elias who walked in noisy steps beside him and shivered as he thought of those strong arms wrapped around him. He wanted to spin in circles again to relieve some of this bubbling energy inside him.

 

_He might not appreciate your imaginings. He called me pretty though. That has to count for something. And dear gods, that blush!_

 

Pulling his keys out of his pants pocket, Adam swung them between his fingers to distract himself from the temptation to push Elias against a wall and drop to his knees.

 

“So, it’s a pretty small place. I hope that’s okay.” Fighting against his wants, Adam turned to safer topics.

 

“I live on an island with forty people. I’m okay with small.”

 

_Okay with small? Does that mean you’d be okay with me? Damn it. Adam, pull it together and stop acting like a teenage boy with his first crush._

 

Looking at his feet while tedious shame washed through him, Adam noticed Elias’ hands doing a peculiar dance. He watched the long fingers stretch out towards his own hand and then flinch backwards as if burned. He watched the dance repeat a few more cycles before he understood the significance. Warmth burst in his chest at the implications and he sighed with relief as they rounded the corner to his apartment. Keys in hand and his heart jumping into his throat, Adam led the way up to his apartment while Elias rambled.

 

“This is a very old building. Do you have mice? I don’t mind them of course but it’s always good to know beforehand so I can be prepared. Do you have enough fire exits? Does your apartment have a balcony? I think I could escape a fire from a balcony so long as it wasn’t too high up. I have very strong legs. This banister is wobbly? Do you think anyone died in this staircase? I don’t believe in ghosts of course but if I did, I wouldn’t want to be haunting a staircase.”

 

Adam couldn’t keep the smile off his face at the stream of conscious coming from Elias, finding the nervous talking adorable. Sliding his key into the lock, Adam turned the door to his apartment and Elias fell silent as Adam led him through. The small apartment overlooked a tiny sliver of park but mostly Adam’s view consisted of a brick building and the occasional pigeon.

 

“Home sweet home,” Adam said, throwing his keys into the bowl by the door and flipping on the lights. Beige colored walls, a small glass coffee table, and a dark green couch completed the living room while an outdated kitchen stood to the right and a door leading to the bedroom and bathroom was on the left. Peeling off his coat, Adam draped it on the couch and turned back to see Elias still standing at the doorway.

 

“Come in Elias,” Adam said with a bow. “It’s not much but it’s warm.”

 

Elias scampered through the door, closed it, and turned all the locks like a robber might burst through at any moment. Adam couldn’t stop the pleased smile on his face.

 

_He might be weird, but he’s thoughtful and cute and most importantly, here. What more could I want?_

 

Watching Elias take in his apartment and fidget by the door, Adam read the anxiety and fear rolling within him. He stepped forward and held out his hand.

 

“You can touch if you want.” Adam said.

 

Elias stared at him, mouth hanging open and brow furrowed in confusion as if Adam had started speaking an entirely different language.

 

Adam tried again. “You can touch me if you want. I’d like it.”

 

The progression of comprehension across Elias’ face was like watching the sunrise, bright and burning. He surged forward and wrapped strong arms around Adam’s waist and he melted into the strength of need radiating off of Elias. Burying his face in his neck, Adam smelled a dark earthy musk wrapped in soap and the remnants of sugar. Adam wanted to bathe in it.

 

Leaning back from the hug, Adam smiled at the dazed look on Elias’ face. “Let me know if I'm being rude.”

 

Elias whimpered.

 

_I want to get him naked and eat him up._

 

The thought was derailed by a gurgling from Elias’ stomach and a pained expression passed over his face as Adam stared at him.

 

“Are you hungry?” Adam asked, trying to pull away as Elias violently shook his head.

 

“I don’t need food. I’m fine.”

 

Adam stroked Elias’ face and heard the rumbling again. “You’re hungry. Will you let me feed you?” He leaned closer to Elias’ ear. “Food first, more touching later?”

 

Elias whimpered again but stood back and let Adam out of his arms. “You don’t need to though. I can wait.”

 

“I’ve reached the maximum amount of guilt I’m willing to cope with today so indulge me. It wouldn’t hurt to eat a little something myself.” He threw Elias a wink. “At least we have dessert to look forward to.”

 

Elias blushed and Adam placed a quick kiss on his cheek. Moving to the kitchen, Adam pulled out a pan, a loaf of bread, and grabbed butter and cheese from the fridge.

 

“Cheese toasties alright? I’m not the greatest cook but it’s hard to mess those up.”

 

“What kind of cheese?”

 

“Um, the yellow kind?”

 

The look of horror on Elias’ face made Adam take a step back and he grabbed the package, scanning the plastic for a name.

 

“It says mild cheddar,” Adam stammered out.

 

Elias breathed a sigh of relief. “Good. I can’t stand fake cheese. It’s oil and coloring and it’s gross. I’m glad you have real cheese. My brothers make it at our home and I had to sleep in the cheese room once to keep Josef from stealing it. I didn’t like the smell at all but Gabriel needed me.”

 

With Elias rambling and wandering around his apartment, Adam started up the stove and set up his sandwich making station.

 

“Did you want a drink?” Adam asked and turned around to see Elias standing a few inches away from him and biting at his lower lip. With warm brown eyes staring at him and flushed lips so temptingly close, Adam lost his battle against the sexual frustration building inside him. His lips felt perfect and lush and Adam swallowed the small whine Elias made when his tongue swiped across the seam of his mouth, begging for entrance. Elias clung to the front of Adam’s shirt and pulled them closer together, lips and tongues exploring and teasing as they kissed.

 

The smell of hot metal pulled Adam out of his daze and he stepped back with a groan. “The food. I don’t want to waste it.”

 

Elias shook in front of him, his hands twisting in Adam’s shirt while his breath stuttered in his chest. Seeing tears glittering in the corners of his eyes, Adam took pity and gently wrapped his hand around Elias’ arm. Adam turned around slowly and wrapped Elias’ arms around his middle. He walked toward the stove with Elias stumbling after him, stepping on Adam’s heels and bumping into him when he stopped at the stove. Adam buttered the bread, sliced the cheese, and plopped each sandwich into the pan while Elias kept a strong arm around his middle and rested his head between Adam’s shoulder blades. The weight felt comfortable and Adam leaned into the embrace, feeling like this strange man he’d found in the mall and brought home belonged in his space. The idea that Elias, someone two steps away from a stranger, could make him feel more at home in his apartment than any man he’d dated in this town brought a blush to Adam’s skin. The soft sighs against his skin as Elias shifted and pressed into his back, Adam took as sighs of happiness and his smile remained fixed to his face as he finished dinner.

 

“Did you want something to drink?” Adam asked again as the last sandwich made its way from pan to plate.

 

Elias nodded into his shoulder and they made their shuffling way to the fridge, Adam giggling under his breath at Elias’ determination to keep touching. He felt like a mythological creature with four arms as he grabbed the food and Elias helped carry the drinks to the table. At last Elias detached from his back and took a seat at the tiny table.

 

Adam sat across from him and smiled with delight as Elias dug into his food with gusto, large bites of melted cheese and bread and long gulps of beer to wash them down. Adam ate with more finesse, using a napkin instead of his pants to wipe away grease, but his pleasure at feeding someone other than himself overrode his dismay at the terrible table manners.

 

“You said you lived on an island, Elias. Which one?”

 

At the question, Elias paused and put his sandwich down. Swallowing and clearing his throat, Elias looked more than a little nervous but after another cough, he answered. “I live on Ork. It’s a little island, not very many people, but my family is there. Family is important you know. I have four brothers and we raise animals and sell eggs and cheese. My brothers are all very happy there.”

 

Adam nodded. “They’re happy but you’re not huh? I know how that goes.”

 

Elias looked down at his plate. “I’m perfectly happy there. I’m with my family and they love me. Why wouldn’t I be happy?”

 

Giving him a curious look, Adam saw the twitch of his moustache and wanted to hug him. “But are you? Not that I’d tell you how to live your life but your brother abandoned you in a mall and you didn’t seem the least bit surprised.”

 

Elias picked up his bottle of beer and pulled at the peeling label. “He will cool off and remember how much he needs me and then things will be fine.”

 

Adam shook his head. “You don’t deserve to be treated like that.”

 

“Things will be fine.” Elias snapped picking up his food again and taking a large bite.

 

Figuring that if Elias didn’t want to talk about it, that was fine with him, Adam went back to his own food. With sandwiches demolished and beers emptied, Adam leaned back in his chair and pondered the man currently shaking the last few drops of beer from the bottle down his throat.

 

_He’s odd, clingy, prickly, and certainly not the most handsome of men, so why am I dying to know what it feels like to kiss that mustached mouth?_

 

Adam sat and watched as Elias picked up the plates and the bottles and brought them to the kitchen, placing the bottles in the trash and setting the plates in the sink. He stared in disbelief as Elias started the faucet and scrubbed cheese and crumbs off the plates as well as run a rag over the pan still sitting on the stove.

 

_He does dishes. That’s good enough for me._

 

Standing in a rush, Adam moved to the kitchen and pulled Elias into his arms, smiling at the small squeak of surprise Elias emitted. “You didn’t have to do that. Dishes could have waited till morning.”

 

Elias blushed and Adam nuzzled his face into his neck, feeling that warm rush of comfort flood his body as sturdy arms wrapped around him.

 

“I do lots of cleaning at home. It’s better to clean things like dishes right away. My brothers, before I moved in of course, would let the dishes sit for days and they never dusted. It was disgusting. I don’t know what they would do now with-”

 

Kissing Elias proved to be an excellent distraction tactic and Adam smiled into the kiss as Elias melted in his arms and pressed against his entire body with a groan. Anticipation hummed through Adam as he felt Elias’ erection pressed into his thigh, the heavy thickness against his leg causing his own cock to respond in kind. His hands found their way to Elias’ hair and he pulled on the thick curls as he opened his mouth to the hesitant exploration of Elias’ tongue.

 

At the touch of his tongue against Adam’s, Elias pulled back from the kiss and stared at him in confusion. “You kissed me.”

 

“Yes, I did,” Adam answered with a smirk. “I intend to do it again. Unless you don’t want me to?”

 

Elias’ confusion couldn’t outweigh his need and he shook his head. “No. I mean, people want to, I mean, people do not say, I mean...”

 

Adam could almost see the smoke rising from Elias’ curls as he battled with what he wanted to say. “Sit down okay?”

 

Grabbing his hand, Adam led Elias over to the couch and sat him down on the overstuffed cushion. He moved slowly, to give him time to react, and slid into Elias’ lap. Straddling those firm thighs, Adam took a deep breath and reminded himself that it was bad form to rut against someone in obvious distress.

 

When he was comfortable, Adam placed his hands on Elias’ chin and made him look up. “Now, what was it you wanted to say?”

 

Elias’ mustache trembled as he fought for the words. “I want to say that people like to kiss me all the time because I’m a fantastic kisser. It’s not true though. It’s stupid but, I don’t want to lie to you because Ellen says lying to people is wrong, especially people you care about.”

 

“Do you always listen to Ellen?” Adam asked, running his hands from Elias’ chin, down his neck, and around his biceps, and pointedly ignoring the “people you care about” comment.

 

Elias shrugged and pushed a pillow off the couch. “Gabriel likes me more when I listen to her.”

 

“Well,” Adam started, unsure how they went from kissing to talking about lying and Ellen. “I’m happy you didn’t lie to me. Is there anything else I need to know before I kiss you again?”

 

Elias looked up at him with those warm brown eyes, slightly red from unshed tears, and nodded. “I’ve never, I mean, you’re the first person I’ve touched in a long time - in ever. Kissing or...otherwise. I don’t want you to be disappointed.”

 

Dragging his hands through Elias’ hair, Adam felt his heart clench at those words.

 

_He must be pushing fifty and he’s never had sex before? Adam, what have you gotten yourself into?_

 

“I can go if you want.” Elias whispered even as his hands clutched at Adam’s hips.

 

Adam shook his head, giving him a small smile and shifting in his lap. “No, leaving right now would make me very unhappy.”

 

Taking Elias’ face in his hands, he smoothed his thumbs over his skin and leaned in. The kiss started out gentle and sweet but Adam felt that large bulge beneath him and groaned at the contact. Elias responded to the groan with enthusiasm, hands sliding up Adam’s back and shifting him forward until their chests pressed together. His arousal felt painful, his skin itchy, and Adam stripped off his shirt, throwing it to the ground and tugging at Elias’ clothes.

 

Adam huffed as he pulled on the offending sweater and t-shirt. “Off, these things off.”

 

With his nose scrunched in concentration, Elias lifted his long arms and let Adam slide his clothing off until they both sat bare chested and breathing heavily. Adam bit his lip at the sight off all that hair curling on Elias’ chest and he ran his fingers down the broad expanse of his shoulders until they carded through it. Elias twitched under him and Adam couldn’t stop his moan. In a swift movement, Elias twisted them around until Adam lay the full length of the couch and Elias sat crouched between his legs.

 

“Pretty.” Elias whispered as his hands skimmed over Adam’s chest and stomach, trailing his fingers through the small line of dark hair that ran from Adam’s belly button to the edge of his slacks.

 

“Horny.” Adam countered, just to see that flush spread over Elias’ face again.

 

The word seemed to light a fire in Elias and he tugged at Adam’s slacks, impatience stamped in the wrinkles and valleys of his face. Reaching between them, Adam undid the buttons along his fly and pushed the unwanted fabric down his hips, kicking his shoes off and sliding his pants and boxers down, drawing his legs up to pull the last few inches from his body and throw them in the direction of the bedroom. Elias’ eyes flickered over his body, as if not sure where to look first and Adam cupped an arm around his neck and drew him back in for a kiss. Pushing his tongue into Elias’ mouth, Adam explored the sharp ridges of his teeth and the soft slickness of his tongue, sucking it and teasing it until Elias pulled away with panting breaths. Adam felt as if he could watch that sturdy chest heave above him all night.

 

“Adam.” The word was a whine, a plea, something he had no trouble interpreting. Pulling on the waistline of Elias’ pants, Adam pushed the material down and wrapped his hand around the thick cock he found, already slick with pre-cum dribbling from the slit.

 

“Oh yes,” Adam purred, licking his lips as he looked into Elias’ eyes and stroked his cock.

 

Elias shook and whimpered and came into Adam’s hand in quick pulses of cum, the milky fluid coating his hand and the inside of Elias’ underwear.

 

_Fuck. Of course, he’s a fucking virgin who can’t control himself. Just my luck._

 

A red blush painted the whole of Elias’ face as well as his neck as Adam pulled back his hand and wiped the dripping cum on the side of Elias’ pants. He could feel his cock throbbing between them, neglected and needy, and sighed at the idea of once again masturbating by himself. Before he could suggest a shower or a change of clothes, Adam felt his legs being pushed apart and a warm wet mouth clamping around his cock. Teeth dug into the sensitive skin of his shaft and a tongue pushed hard against his slit and Adam hissed in pain.

 

“Stop, stop!” Adam cried out, sighing in relief as the painful pressure around his cock eased up and he slid from Elias’ mouth with a plop.

 

Elias stared down at him, a pout twisting his lips. “Do you not want to cum?”

 

“Oh, I want to,” Adam said, exhaling in a loud huff. “Just not with teeth marks in my dick.” The blush reappeared on Elias’ face and Adam groaned. “It’s not fair. One hint of that blush and I’m too weak to resist.”

 

Elias looked confused, as if not sure Adam was making fun of him or not. Placing his fingers under Elias’ chin, Adam sat up and pressed a slow kiss to his mouth, taking his time to lick over the uneven curve of his upper lip and across the saliva slicked expanse of his bottom one. The kiss brought a hitch to Elias’ breathing and Adam sucked at his lower lip for a moment before releasing it with a pop.

 

“Want to try that blow job again?” Adam asked. Elias’ enthusiastic nod brought a chuckle bubbling up from his chest. Settling back down on the couch, taking a quick moment to stuff a pillow under his lower back, Adam opened his legs and waved Elias forward.

 

“Go slow okay? And absolutely no teeth.”  Elias gave a firm nod and repositioned himself between Adam’s legs. He immediately drew back and Adam frowned. The frown vanished as Elias pulled down his messed pants and underwear and Adam got his first glimpse of Elias in all his glory. Even soft and sticking slightly to his thigh, Elias’ cock looked big enough for Adam to feel for days and he instantly set his mind forward to the morning when he could wake up and ride Elias until he fainted.

 

_Fuck. I’m so jealous of future me right now._

 

His mind shifted back to the present as a wet mouth once again enveloped his cock. Instead of pain and pressure, this time there was a soft glide and the touch of Elias’ tongue licking the underside of his plump head.

 

“Oh God, Elias. Yes. A little bit more suck. Yes. Like that.” Adam clutched at Elias’ head, both for support and to pull him back if things got rough again.

 

Adam’s eyes rolled to the back of his head and he couldn’t stop the bucking of his hips as Elias slid his mouth further down his cock. Elias pulled back, positioned his hands on Adam’s hips, and held him down as he sucked Adam’s tip in long slow slurps. The sound was obscene and filthy and sent a shiver of want up Adam’s spine, curling his toes while his back arched into Elias’ touch.

 

“Elias, please. I can’t-can’t-”

 

His words stuttered to a halt as Elias sucked him all the way down and nuzzled into the thatch of hair at the base of his cock. Adam’s hands grasped at Elias’ head and shoulders and one thick swallow from Elias had him twitching and cumming and screaming. Elias pulled back immediately and spat what little cum entered his mouth onto the Adam’s chest, wiping at his mouth with the back of his hand and grimacing. Adam stared at the spot of cum on his chest then back up at Elias in disbelief.

 

“Did you, spit on me?”

 

Elias wiped at his mouth again. “It was disgusting. Hold on.”

 

He stood and Adam felt his cock give a small twitch at the sight of Elias’ large cock swinging between his legs. The sight of him full and hard and leaking, shot aftershocks through Adam but his cock was spent and while his mind was willing, his body needed rest and a shower. Elias came back with a warm wet towel and wiped the remnants of their orgasms from his skin as well as Adam’s stomach and he forgave him just a little for the spitting. A small curl of warmth wrapped around his belly and he pulled Elias closer, or tried to; he frowned and balked at the movement.

 

“What are you doing?”

 

“I want to kiss you.” Adam smiled and tried to pull him down again. Elias didn’t move. “What is it?”

 

“That’s gross. I had your cock in my mouth. Why do you want to kiss me?”

 

Adam giggled and pulled on his chest hair. “Because I want to. It’s not gross, it’s fine. Come here.”

 

Elias still looked skeptical but he bent down and let Adam press tiny kisses to his lips and cheeks and moustache, working down over his adam’s apple and sucking on the sweaty meat of his shoulder. The hitch in Elias’ hips made Adam smile into his skin.

 

He turned his head and whispered in Elias’ ear. “Can I make you cum again?”

 

“If you use your mouth, I’m not kissing you after.”

 

 

In the end, Adam wrenched another orgasm from Elias with his mouth locked around his impressive girth and Elias conceded to more kissing after Adam dutifully rinsed with mouthwash, twice. Afterwards, Adam dragged Elias to the shower, gathering up their clothes and throwing the dirty garments into the wash as they passed. The shower turned into another kissing session and as they dried off, Adam touched the dark bruises sucked into his neck with fond amusement. Explaining these to Liv would be a treat. After starting the load of clothes and sizing up Elias’ large form, Adam dug in the back of his closet until he unearthed a pair of gray sweatpants. They were wrinkled and way too large for his slim frame but he’d forgotten to throw them away in the aftermath of his move.

 

“Here, you can wear these while we wait for your clothes to wash,” Adam said, tossing them to Elias with a smile. “Old boyfriend left them behind. Be glad cause we both know none of my things would fit you.”

 

Elias nodded. “You are much smaller than me. I’d rip your clothes.”

 

“Yes, and not in the fun way.”

 

Elias seemed to ponder what kind of clothing ripping would be fun while he pulled on the pants that proved to be too short and a bit tight and Adam wanted to tackle him to the couch.

 

“Come on, the bed is this way,” Adam said with a wave of his hand, cursing his need for sleep.

 

Elias looked at the couch and then Adam, then back at the couch and Adam again, before hurrying to follow him into the bedroom. Letting Elias settle into the bed, Adam switched their clothes to the dryer and pushed start. He stared at the bright green ON button, lost in thought.

 

_I want him to stay. How fucked up is that? Is this what I’ve come to? A pathetic man who needs a relationship to feel stable? God. It’s not even that he makes me feel stable. I’ve known him for all of a few hours! He makes me feel something though. And it isn’t boredom._

 

“Adam, are you coming to bed?” Elias called from the bedroom and Adam cursed the surge of happiness as the sound of his name in that low rumbling voice.

 

_I’m so fucked._

 

Padding barefoot into his bedroom, Adam looked at Elias waiting under the covers with the sheets to his chin and felt his irritation melt away. It was new, this feeling of comfortable happiness, but Adam hoped he would get used to it and even if Elias left, perhaps he would come back and see him again. The thought colored his happiness with a tinge of melancholy.

 

“Are you okay Adam?”

 

Slipping into the covers beside Elias, Adam nodded and turned off the light. “Yeah, I’m fine. Get some sleep.”

 

“Okay. Good night Adam.”

 

“Good night.”

 

“Adam?”

 

“Yeah?”

 

“Do you think Gabriel will come back for me tomorrow?”

 

“I don’t know, Elias.”

 

“I hope he doesn’t.”

 

Adam turned over and looked at Elias with sleepy eyes. “Why do you say that?”

 

“Because then I could just stay with you.”

 

Adam swallowed the lump of emotion struggling in his throat and felt the sting of tears in his eyes. “I thought your brother needed you.”

 

Elias rolled over so that they faced each other, the dim light of the street lamps painting their features in orange and shadow. Placing a large hand to Adam’s cheek, Elias brushed a fallen tear from his face.

 

“He does. He did. I’m not sure what he needs now.” Elias drew Adam closer, his strength sending shivers of want through Adam’s body while blood rushed to his cock in a vain attempt at an erection. “But maybe you need me more. For dishes and orgasms and I’m very strong.”

 

Adam laughed and kissed him hard and rough, sliding and sucking, and biting on his lips while Elias dragged his large fingers through Adam’s still drying hair.

 

Pulling back from the kiss, Adam ran his hands over Elias’ chest and spoke low and calm. “Tomorrow, you will go back with your brother and you can call me when you get home and I’ll call you when I’m off work. Next time you’re in town, we’ll go to dinner and I’ll introduce you to Liv. In a few weeks, we’ll decide if this relationship will work. I’m betting it does and we can talk about moving in together then alright?”

 

Elias scrunched up his face and frowned. “Why do we have to wait?”

 

“Because I’ve rushed before and it ended in awful fights and it’s one of the reasons I left home and moved here.” Placing his hand over Elias’ Adam took a deep breath and forged ahead. “I do like you but I also barely know you. Let me get to know you and if I still like you, then we can talk moving in together. Deal?”

 

Elias dropped his hand and pulled the covers over his head. “You won’t like me then.”

 

“Try me,” Adam said. “You’re not normal, I’ll give you that, but normal is so boring these days. Normal means mutual orgasms and then speaking again. I gave you two orgasms and you want to move in. We are way past normal. Can you trust me on this? That moving a bit slower is the right thing to do?”

 

Elias peeked out over the covers. “Like how I trust Ellen to tell me when something is right or wrong?”

 

“Hey, though maybe give me a bit more trust than that. I did give you two orgasms. Ellen can’t say that.”

 

Elias blushed and shook his head with violent twists of his neck. Adam wrapped his arms around his chest, snuggling into the warmth of his body, and sighed in contentment. He felt light and free and with a solid plan instead of worry, sleep came quick.

 

“Good night Adam.”

 

“Mmmrmf.”

 

“Adam, do you snore?”

 


End file.
